Black Cat
by kuefox
Summary: Looking back at the time that stray, black cat turned out to be an attractive guy, maybe the normal thing to do might have been to call the cops and bust his ass. Not kick him in the gut and curse him out. But then again, when have I ever been exactly "normal"?
1. Re-Hash

**Finally finally finally writing a Kingdom Hearts fanficiton. I've wanted to write one for so long now, and now that KHIII is coming out, I thought it;d be the perfect time to post one. Please tell me what you think! **

* * *

"Cadence, go out to the store and get me some sewing needles,"

"..."

_"Cadence!"_

"..."

"Get off of that tumble website and get your ass down here!"

I groaned at my mother's inconsistency at saying "Tumblr" wrong and rolled off of my bed, closing my laptop shut and sitting up to grab some shoes. It was so annoying when she was too busy to go and get her own stuff - I always left to get my things! But, being fifteen and the perfect age to use as a slave worker, I was always the one who left to get milk, or eggs and the occasional tampons. Then again, I was an only child with little to zero social life; my only friends being an anime-addicted asian and a sassy mexican. Going out to fetch small groceries or other things were kind of the highlight of my weeks.

After also grabbing a jacket from my closet, I made my way downstairs, where my mom was busy sewing away with her last good needle by the television set. She was seated on one of the couches, listening intently on what the news reporter had to say while her nimble hands worked their way over the blue cloth in her hands, easily maneuvering her way through each tiny hole within the fabric. "Thanks, sweetness. I just need the usual pack of needles, that's all." Her voice cut through the news report as she pointed to her purse, sitting on the coffee table in front of her. I nodded and retrieved twenty bucks from her wallet before heading out, absolutely thrilled at going outside in the slight cold and gray skies.

My name is Cadence Allen, a fifteen year old sophomore in high school with a bad attitude towards most people. It's not that I hate everyone I meet, it's just that everyone I meet is a complete jerk. A good example would be my lame excuse for a father, who just decided to up and leave our town in Texas once I was about six. My mother never forgave him, and usually takes out her anger on him through cooking and sewing. So far, we've gotten seven new sweaters and had about four really good dinners all in two weeks. I can't blame her, my father's always been kind of a prick, even when he was still around - what with him always going out drinking and coming back totally drunk the next morning, or always leaving a mess everywhere he goes. It was sort of a relief to my mom when he finally left that morning. Since then, she's been making me do more stuff around the house, and not to mention she's given me more freedom to do more things on my own. Like pick up her sewing needles. But, I was able to finally dye my hair whatever colors I wanted, so I went with three different colors: pink, blue and black. A few strands of hair on the right side are blue, some strands on the left side are pink, and my bangs are black. The rest of my hair is my original color, a dark orange. I inherited my mother's hair, and my dad's green eyes.

Luckily, the trip to the store wasn't that far or long. I soon was walking home with a plastic bag full of sewing needles in my hand. I couldn't wait to get back home and maybe stay on Tumblr for a bit longer and then start that painting I've wanted to start for a while now. I grew up drawing and coloring, and my mom encouraged me to always keep drawing and sketching, even if it's not something professional (like a still-life or portrait). Which is always fine with me, who needs to do homework, anyways?

Once I passed the usual alley that was on the way home, I failed to notice the small, black cat that was following me, keeping its pace up with mine. I turned around when I heard it sneeze, and narrowed my eyes towards the small animal in annoyance. "What? I'm not going to take you home. Mom doesn't want pets," I said aloud, grateful no one was out in this area of town to hear me talking to a cat. My protest didn't stop him and he kept following behind me, pretty intent on following me all the way back home. I rolled my eyes and huffed once I reached the small house we stayed at, opening the gate and trying to shut it before the cat could get in, but it darted in before I could close it. I've had enough of this cat, thinking it can just waltz in and live with us - like hell we would take in some stray!

"Mom, this cat wouldn't stop following me home," I called as I opened the door slightly, trying not to let it inside. The shuffling of her house slippers came closer and she finally poked her head outside, spotting the black cat next to me. "What do I do?"

She grinned, "Let it inside, of course!"

Thanks, mom. You're the best...

"I still don't get why we're taking in a stray," I said for the umpteenth time that day as I watched my mother pull out a small blanket for our new "guest". She set it next to the bowl of milk she had set out for the cat and stood up to her full height, rolling her eyes at my constant pestering. "You don't even like pets."

"Cadence, look at the poor thing! He needs a home," she pushed some curly red hair from her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. My mom was never one to stand for any shit, so I knew I had to stop my protests.

But there was still something that bothered me. "Why can't his home be in the kitchen or laundry room? Why's it gotta be _my_ room?"

Starting on her way downstairs, she called back, "You know that's no way to treat an animal! He needs love and affection, Cadence." I rolled my eyes and plopped on my bed, done with her "cat-affection" stuff. Speak of the devil, the little snot decided to waltz into my room for some milk. He was a short-haired black cat, and the weirdest thing was that he had bright, yellow eyes. Other than that, he was a normal cat.

Or so I thought.

"If it were up to me, I'd have left you out in the rain." I grumbled, running a hand through my hair in frustration as the rain pitter-pattered outside my window. It began to rain not too soon after I arrived home with the little pain-in-the-ass.

"I know that."

I froze. _Who the hell said that?_ _Should I get up and check? But wouldn't mom have known if someone busted into the house?_ I sat up slowly, my jeans rustling slightly as I checked to see if anyone was in my room, but found nothing. Just the stupid cat who was now on my side table next to my bed. I glared before standing up and walking to my doorway, not seeing anyone in sight and nothing out of the usual.

"No one's in the house, idiot. I said that," came the same voice again, and this time when I stepped back in my room, there was a guy. An actual BOY standing in my room, leaning against my side table with an annoyed expression. His outfit was a bit out of the ordinary - if you don't consider a black and red bodysuit or a skirt-type of thing tied around his waist with several belts out of the ordinary. Plus his hair was a bit spiky and jet-black, and not to mention his creepy yellow eyes that just threw me off.

I would have screamed if I were just any old girl, except I'm not just any old girl.

Instead I sort of went in and kicked him in the gut.

You can say I surprised him by the way he held his stomach and dropped to his knees, yelling,_ "MOTHER FUCKER!"_

Hopefully my mother didn't hear that.

Because this guy was actually sort of attractive and I didn't want him going to jail just yet.

* * *

**So Vanitas is one of my favorite characters, and I've had this OC for a while now and I just thought I'd squish 'em together in this new story. **

**DROP A REVIEW IF YOU LIKED! ^W^ **


	2. A Momentary Trip

**yeeee update.**

* * *

"Now," I sighed, plopping down on my swivel chair that I pulled from my desk, resting my arms on the backrest, "You wanna tell me who the hell you are?"

For a fifteen year old girl, I think I was taking this situation pretty well— I've gotten this guy's wrists bound with one of my belts, and I also tied down his ankles with one of my scarves for good measure and to make sure he didn't run away. He look pretty steamed, with a big scowl on his face and his amber eyes narrowed; guess he didn't expect me to take his ass down. Ignoring my demand, he instead growled, "Untie me first!"

Scoffing, I rolled my eyes. "Yeah...that's not really an answer to my question. Here, let's trade. My name's Cadence. Now yours is?"

"Like hell I'm telling you," he spat, glaring viciously. Why does he have to be difficult? That's a major let down from his good looks. "Now untie me!"

He still thinks I'm gonna let him go. That's cute.

"I'll untie you_ if_," I emphasized on the "if", lowering his hopes just a tiny bit, "You just tell me who you are. That's all I'm asking."

His struggling slowed just a bit as he considered my offer, his eyes never leaving mine. Then, a sigh. "It's Vanitas. Now keep to your word and untie me."

Vanitas? What kind of hipster name was that? I raised an eyebrow at his answer and instead crossed my arms, asking, "Where'd you come from? That's not a usual name around here."

The boy's anger rose when I asked, seeing as I went back on my word. Rolling my eyes, I stood and crouched down, undoing the belt around his wrist so he could get the scarf off of his boots. It felt good to be in charge for once, since it was usually my mother telling me what to do and how to do it (with the occasional smack on the head). Vanitas finally got the bright blue scarf off of his ankles and was rubbing his wrists, clearly annoyed with the way I handled him. Not my fault he wasn't prepared for a fifteen year old girl who knows how to bind people quickly. "Now will you answer my questions?"

"Not like I have a choice..." he muttered, pouting slightly. He huffed, saying, "I'm from another world, dipshit."

"Obviously, jerk," I shot back, pushing my swivel chair back by my desk and instead sitting down on my bed, the belt tucked inside my back pocket in case he got any ideas. "Exactly what do you mean 'another world'?"

The raven-haired boy stood up, crossing his arms. "I mean exactly what I said. Your puny world isn't the only one out there. Just take a trip to the Lanes Between." And with that, Vanitas suddenly disappeared with a swirl of blackness, oozing onto the floor until reshaping into a black cat. I jumped back on my bed, hitting my head on the bedpost as the small animal licked its paw nonchalantly.

"Y-You were..." I swallowed thickly, still confused and even more shocked at the situation, "You were the cat? No, you _are_ t-the cat?" He gave me an annoyed look and hopped onto my side table, its tail wrapping around its legs while I tried to comprehend the whole ordeal.

"Why is this so surprising? Are there no shape shifters here?" came the same voice from the cat. I blinked and shook my head, not believing any of this. "I sure chose the wrong person..."

That caught my attention. "Chose?"

The cat narrowed his eyes, clearly frustrated with all of my questions. What did he expect? For me to just go along with everything, no problem? No way! This was weird and different and completely not what I was expecting when my mom decided to take in a black cat. "When will your damned questions stop?"

Scowling, I crossed my arms. "When this starts making sense! This isn't normal— finding an attractive guy in your room, a talking cat, said guy is supposedly from another world, this doesn't happen normally!" I may have let the attractive part slip out, but hopefully he didn't notice. I was fuming by this point, completely caught off guard by all of this. I've read a lot of book where weird things like this happen to a boy or a girl and they just go along fine with it, like it'll be fun and totally not time-consuming or possibly traumatic. Well, news flash, that wasn't exactly how it works in real life. I have my own list of personal shit to do, like I was sure he had as well.

The black cat sighed in irritation. "If I show you what I mean, will you shut up?"

I nodded at his proposition, and watched at his cat form dissolved into a small puddle of black again and the raven-haired boy stood once again in my bedroom, wearing a scowl himself. With just a flick of his wrist and small "hmph", a sword-like object materialized in his hand, only adding to my shock and confusion. It was shaped like a key - and a morbid one at that. It had chains running along the body of the weapon, along with two creepy, blue eyes placed at the top and near the center. The whole thing immediately put me off, but it seemed to reel me in at the same time. It looked so dark and so destructive, and I couldn't help but wonder if you could actually kill anyone with that. Before Vanitas could start explaining, I asked, "What is that?"

He glared, "I was getting to that, stupid. This is a keyblade. It's a weapon that only certain people can wield back at my place— and we use it to fight off people,"

"What kind of 'people'?" my green eyes skeptically observed the "keyblade" in his hand. It sort of was shaped like a key if you squinted hard enough, with the way the top part stuck out.

"People who won't shut up and listen," the teen answered, tossing the weapon to me. I scrambled to grab it at the last minute, the the metal and chains slightly scratching my arm. My eyes scanned over the object in my hands like it was a diseased puppy with an added infection - gross but interesting at the same time. The thing actually was a bit heavy, as if you'd swing it around like an axe. "Seriously, I'd rather just show you—"

"Like, take me to another world or something? Is that what you mean?" I deadpanned, tossing him his keyblade back. "If so, then _no thanks_, Vani boy."

His eerie yellow eyes narrowed as he caught the weapon easily. "What do you mean 'no thanks'? You don't have much of a choice, idiot." I scoffed and stood from my bed, crossing my arms over my chest as a challenge. I wasn't going anywhere - not without some better explanation as to what the hell was going on.

"What do you mean I don't have a choice? I have to have some say in this! I don't even know who you are or where you came from!" Huffing, I turned to face him with a scowl. "You don't look exactly like the nicest guy around, anyways, so maybe I shouldn't even trust you -_ HEY!"_

My sentence was cut short when he suddenly pushed me into some black, swirling portal, then stepping in himself. I rubbed my elbow from where I landed, looking up and growling out, "You little shit!" All he did was smirk and walk around me, totally uncaring like the jerk he was. I picked myself up, dusting off my jeans and looked at the area he pushed me into; the black portal that we came though was gone and out f sight. I was not about to panic, he had to take me back home eventually, even if I had to "convince" him with my softball swinging skills. Instead if my bedroom, we were in some different place,_ very_ different from my usual house in Texas. It didn't even seem real, it looked too bright and colorful, like it came straight out of some cartoon or video game. There was a forest not too far from here, complete with a river flowing out of the bushes and trees that made up the forest. In the direction Vanitas was walking, there was a castle— a real castle! From the outside, it looked like a giant maze was held inside, what with the several towers poking out from the top. I blinked a few times before realizing Vanitas was basically leaving me behind and I caught up to him, asking, "Where the hell are we?"

"The Land Of Departure," was his simple answer. "I'm taking you to meet my Master."

"Your 'master'?" My mind wandered to other things that had to do with that word, but I shook those thoughts away.

Nodding, he pulled out a mask from seemingly nowhere and pulled it on, covering his (attractive) face. "The old man taught me how to use the Keyblade." So you had to learn how to use one of those things. Well, that sounded like it made sense, but why was he taking me to meet his master? Maybe this had something to do with the whole "choosing" business he mentioned earlier, which I was still confused about, but saw no use in trying to get any answers from him right now— since he looked pretty serious. Seems like this "master" of his wasn't that nice of a guy...

We reached the entrance to the castle, where a man stood with his hands folded behind his back facing away from us. He had a slump, or more like a hunchback when I got a better look. He was wearing a black coat over a smaller white one, and had on black pants and boots; everything was mostly black except for his white gloves and shiny, bald head, along with his gray beard.

I didn't like the looks of this guy at all.

The man turned to face us when he heard our footsteps, and I was greeted with a knowing smile and, like Vanitas, piercing, yellow eyes. I didn't like him, but that doesn't mean I was scared of him. If anything, I tried to make myself look a bit taller and intimidating in my sleeveless turtleneck shirt and skinny jeans. "Vanitas, I trust you chose your partner wisely?" His voice was crackly and raspy, a lot like his age.

_Partner?_ The word echoed in my mind a bit angrily. I never agreed to this! The boy next to me nodded, before gesturing to me. "Yeah. She'll make the cut."

I couldn't see his face, but somehow I could tell he was smirking a bit from the tone in his voice. The man faced me, startling me a bit with his bright amber eyes. "I am Master Xehanort. And your name, miss..?"

"Oh, uh, Cadence, sir," I answered, remembering the bit of manners that my mom taught me once. I still had a bad feeling about this guy, even if he came off as the nice-grandpa-let-me-give-you-a-quarter guy. "Nice to meet you. If it's okay to ask, um, why am I here?"

If Vanitas were showing his face right now, he'd be rolling his eyes at my question. The old man before us just gave me another smile and paced began paced slowly. "Cadence, I want to take you under my wing as my apprentice, alongside Vanitas. You will act as a spy for the next few weeks, observing and reporting the on-goings of my dear friend, Master Eraqus', pupils—"

"No, thanks."

Both looked at me in surprise at my interruption. Shrugging, I stuffed my hands in my pockets and added, "I have stuff back home to do."_ Like school work, taking care of my mom, tumblr, and possibly try to get a boyfriend._

Xehanort blinked before asking, "'Stuff'?"

Nodding, I jerked a thumb towards the boy next to me. "He more so forced me here - I never agreed to this, guy. While I am flattered, I'm going to have to turn down this job." I expected him to have Vanitas take me back home, but instead the old man narrowed his yellow eyes a bit, obviously not amused with my answer. I raised an eyebrow; this wasn't going anywhere I wanted it to. My mom was probably already freaking out and dialing the police to get a search party looking for my ass! I know Vani boy was upset about this, hell, he's probably upset that he picked me in the first place. And exactly why me? Usually in those kind of mystical stories, the main characters have some sort of secret power that they don't know they have, or some tragic untold past, or some secret family member/friend that dragged them all into their adventures. Not me. I was just regular old Cadence, half irish, half English, likes to throw darts at a picture of Susan Downey that I have hanging in my room, that's it.

An idea struck the elderly man at that second. "Why don't we cut a deal, miss Cadence?"

"What kind of deal?"

"You act as my pupil, spy on Master Eraqus' students - this includes following them wherever they may go outside of this world - and report back to me when I summon you. Then, and only then, will I return you back home."

That sounded more like a threat than a deal. I had to spy on a bunch of kids and tell him what they do? Why couldn't Vanitas do this by himself?

Either way, it was the only way I could get back home. Whether I liked it or not, I had to agree to his deal.

I sighed before crossing my arms over my chest in defeat. "Deal."

* * *

**thanks for all of the favorites, follows and the reviews! I'm having tons of fun writing this so far :3 Next chapter we get to meet Ven, Terr and Aqua!**

**Drop a review!**


	3. Do Ya Thing

**so how's school for you guys?**

* * *

Normally, I would have asked to at least _call_ home and let my mom know I was gonna be out for a few days, spying on some losers and learning how to properly fight with two guys I didn't know very well, but this situation was the only exception. Plus, I don't think she'd believe me anyways, and instead would have me talk to a therapist or something. So, instead, I decided to suck it up and get this over with, praying for the days to pass by fast so Vanitas could take me back home and we'd forget this ever happened.

Right now, I was about to go into the castle and introduce myself to the people I'd be spying on for the next few weeks. The old man told me I'd have to address him as "Master" Xehanort, since I technically was a student now, along with Vanitas - which sort of pissed me off, but if it'd get me home faster, then so be it. New clothes came with the deal, since apparently jeans and a turtleneck shirt won't make the cut. Instead of normal civilian clothes, I was given different clothes; I've never seen any clothes like these before back home. Replacing my jeans was a white skirt that reached my mid thigh, the corner of it having a spiky design, along with white leggings with the same design on the very bottom of each leg. Brown combat boots took the place of my Vans, which I didn't really mind. My sleeveless shirt was instead a cropped, white sleeveless shirt, another red shirt underneath to hide my stomach. I also received bell-sleeves, white with an orange border on the bottom. On one hand is a black glove to protect my hand when I use my weapon - which wasn't identified yet. I was pretty eager to find out what I'll be fighting with. Will it be a keyblade like Vanitas? Or something different?

Once I was changed and everything, Master Xehanort went over the plan for the umpteenth time: spy on the students and act friendly, get close to them. "Pretend" was the key word in this plan, he said, I have to act as if I wanted to be their friends and figure out how to become a better fighter. In reality, I couldn't give two shits as to what they fought like or how they dealt with things, I just wanted to get the information and get home. Of course, I'd have to keep that to myself. He also gave me their names, Terra, Aqua and Ventus. Great, more hipster names.

Along with spying and learning from their master, I get lessons from Vanitas on how to fight. I'd have to sneak out and meet him at their place, The Keyblade Graveyard. By using a dark portal, the one Vanitas used to get me here, I can easily go to any world I want to.

I got a crash course on the difference between light and dark, as well. From what they told me, darkness is much more powerful than the light. People have both light and darkness in their hearts, it's just a matter of who uses which more. I didn't know which I used more, but I'd rather use the darkness if it'll get me stronger and get me home faster. I was told not to worry about which to use in battle, and to just rely on strength and magic.

Which was another thing— magic? What kind of magic were we talking here, the magician kind or the actual spells and wizardry stuff? Vanitas wouldn't answer any of my questions, instead just telling me I'd have to wait and find out myself. Needless to say, I was pissed off.

Anyways, let's just get this show on the road.

"...I must see what she can learn from you and your pupils, my dear friend. If it is not too much trouble, of course—"

"No, of course not. It would be a pleasure, Xehanort," Master Eraqus gave a reassuring smile towards the older man. A large scar ran over his right eye, and I winced when I thought of the possible ways he could have gotten it. Master Eraqus looked to be a pretty nice guy, but he also looked like he meant business and tolerated no nonsense. He had black hair tied in a ponytail, with some hair falling down around his neck. Over his clothes and armor was a white haori with a hood, and a cream colored hakama. He resembled a samurai more than anything, to me. Turning to me, he kept the smile and asked, "What's your name?"

"Oh, it's Cadence, sir," I replied, standing up straight and putting my arms to my side, like I was directed to do by Vanitas. This was how I was supposed to talk to my Master? All up-tight? Ugh, this was going to be a drag... "Nice to meet you, Master Eraqus."

He chuckled, "My, what manners. Well, come along, lets introduce you to the others."

I inwardly groaned but nodded, following suit behind him as I was led through a flight of stairs and up to a foyer with three seats placed at the front of the room, large and very formal. They looked like thrones, and I immediately wanted to just jump onto one, pull out my laptop and browse Tumblr for a couple of hours. But I restrained myself and waited for Master Eraqus to get his students. Master Xehanort gave me a nod and turned on his heel, leaving the castle and this began my task. I just hoped these guys weren't too mean or too nice, or too stuck up or too modest. Easy to get close to.

I was snapped out of thoughts when I heard the shuffle of footsteps from the hall Master Eraqus went into, three new people walking behind him. Should I have been nervous? My question was answered when I saw these three dorks— okay, two dorks, giggling over something while the girl of the group just looked really tired of their shit. I had a feeling it was always like this between them and I couldn't help but bite back a laugh once they saw me and straightened up. They took their places next to me and stood up straight, arms to their sides like me, in respect. Master Eraqus took his spot near the three thrones and began speaking, voice dignified, "Let me just start off by saying that that wasn't a very clever joke, Ven. Nor was it funny,"

The blonde next to me snickered while the elder continued, "And onto more important matters, we will be having a new student study with us for some time, as you can see. Her name is Cadence, apprentice of Master Xehanort."

I felt three pairs of eyes on me, and I visibly tensed. Master Eraqus gave a knowing smile and dismissed us, leaving the room for us to mingle.

_Wait, no, stay, I don't wanna meet these weirdos—_ My silent pleads were cut off by a hand yanking on mine, shaking it eagerly. The blonde boy that looked to be around me age had a toothy grin, "Hi, Cadence! I'm Ventus, but you can call me Ven! And that's Terra and Aqua!" He introduced himself and the others cheerfully, blue eyes shining. I blinked before nodding slowly, chuckling.

"H-Hi...uh, nice to meet you guys,"

"You don't need to be so nervous," The blue haired woman, Aqua, laughed. She looked to be really nice and sweet. Hopefully not the annoying kind of nice and sweet. Her outfit was really feminine yet it made her seem tough: a high-collared halter top, two pink belts crossing as an "X" over her top and black shorts. Over the shorts were various blue and white cloths draped over her waist, and high stockings stopping at her mid thighs. Her shoes were armored and had a hook on the side of each. "We don't bite."

I smiled once Ven let go of my hand. "I dunno, this guy looks like he can rip my head off any moment," The brunette cracked a smile at my comment. "Oh, so he can smile."

He looked really muscular and pretty cool, with his skintight black, high collared shirt, two red straps crossing over his upper body similar to Aqua. He also had on hakama, like the Master, except his was a tan color. His shoes resembled Aqua's in terms of being armored.

"I like her!" The blonde next to me chirped, Aqua nodding and agreeing. Ven dressed just as weirdly as the other two: he wore a jacket that was a fusion of white and black, reminding me of ying and yang, and underneath was a gray best with one button and angular designs. Around his stomach was a piece of metal, sort of like what Master Eraqus has, and his pants were more capri pants with shades of gray, black and white. His shoes were, once again, armored like Aqua's and Terra's.

Terra joked, "I dunno, we already have Ven to worry about, now we have another kid to look after?"

I crossed my arms. "I can look after myself, thank you very much. And I'm not a kid, I'm fifteen years old, practically an adult already!"

"Ven's just one year older than you and he still can't use the bathroom at night—"

"_Terra_!" The younger boy interrupted while Aqua and I laughed. I could tell I was gonna like living with these guys.

"You're lucky the castle has tons of spare rooms," Aqua said as we stopped by one of the many rooms that the castle held, turning the knob and pushing the door open. The three of them had taken me on a tour of the place, showing me everyplace there was to see: the kitchen, the dining room, the garden, library, training grounds, the forest, the lake in the forest, and finally, the rooms they stayed in. Aqua and Terra's rooms were in the same hall, while Ven and I shared a hall with each other.

I poked my head into the barren room; there was a bed in the corner, with a blanket and two pillows, and a large window took up a lot of space next to the bed. A side table and lamp stood next to the bed as well, the whole room looking small and comfy. Of course, once I add a few things here and there, it'll be perfect for me. The walls of the room were a plain light brown, and the floorboards creaked slightly underneath my weight as I stepped inside to further examine the area. "I don't know if I'd call it 'luck'..."

The blue haired woman chuckled. "You could share a room with one of the guys—"

"Ah, this room is perfect!" This Aqua was pretty sassy! I got along with her right away, and I've always thought I wouldn't get along with an older sibling figure in my life. The only older person I get along well with is my mother and the guy at the convenience store who always asks me how I'm doing when I pick up stuff for my mom. "Thanks for showing me around, guys."

Ven grinned. "No problem! You're one of us, now!"

I liked that idea. Even if I might end up stabbing them in the back. I liked the idea of a bigger family than just two people. Before I even knew it, I was smiling, and not just a fake smile, but an actual sincere smile. I didn't really smile like that anymore, and it felt a bit weird how easily it came. Hell, I didn't even know these guys that well, and yet, it seemed like they were such good people. People you can easily trust and talk to, and not have to worry about them leaving or giving up on you.

Before I got too into my own thoughts, Terra suggested I get some time to settle in, and they agreed they'd see me at dinner later that night. After waving bye and closing the door softly, I turned to examine my new (temporary) room once more. I'd have to add tons of new additions to this boring, old room...

A scratching sound at my window tore me from my thoughts, and I turned to see a black cat perched on the windowsill, a scowl present on its face. Rolling my eyes, I pulled the window open and asked, "What?"

It remained still with the scowl still on its face. "Keep your window open from now on. It'll make it easier for me to slip in."

"Slip in? I thought I'd be doing the spying work here, not you."

"I meant to keep an eye on you. We can't have you getting too close to those losers," Vanitas clarified. "And your first combat training will be at the training grounds."

I grimaced. "Combat training? Do I have t-"

"Shut up and meet me there after dark. And make sure no one sees you." With that, the animal hopped off the windowsill, disappearing somewhere in a portal of darkness.

How would I ever get along with that little shit...

* * *

**drop a review if you liked! c: **


	4. Slow Down The Song

**for a p cool time, play the song "Slow Down The Song" by selener on paragraph seventeen or so**

**READER VOTE AT THE END**

* * *

"Van? Vanitas? Hello-o-o-o-"

"Do you have to be so annoying and loud?" The raven-haired teen snapped, hopping down from his waiting spot on a tree branch. I don't know why he was complaining, he was the one who told me to meet him here at the training grounds after dark. Which, by the way, wasn't creepy at all, no, not at all. He's lucky I wasn't afraid of the dark, or this would have ended up very badly for the both of us. "I'm regretting my choice of a companion every second that goes by."

"Well, gee, thanks," I shot back with just as much sass, putting my hands on my hips like I've seen my mother do to me sometimes. "And are we really gonna train here in the dark? How am I supposed to see?"

Sighing dramatically, the teen summoned his keyblade, raising it up ever so slightly in one hand, illuminating several bright lanterns and lamp posts around us, the training grounds now completely lit with a warm, yellow light. Much better than the gloomy light casted from the moon before. Vanitas turned back to me, an expectant look on his face. "Does that suit your tastes, your highness?"

Rolling my eyes, I replied cheekily, "I guess it'll have to do."

A fake smile. "Cute. Now let's get onto business," Oh, boy. "First things first, your weapon."

Nodding, I looked around the area for any random swords or knives lying around to practice for, since I assumed I won't be getting a keyblade of my own anytime soon— I hear they're picky about their owners— besides, if rather have an actual death-weapon handy with me instead of some lousy key. When I found none, I gave the raven-haired boy an incredulous look, motioning to the empty training grounds around us. "Uh...there's nothing here for me to use, guy."

He rolled his bright yellow eyes, taking a few steps towards me. "Idiot, you can't just expect me to hand you a sword or something," Actually, I sorta was counting on it. "You paint and stuff, don't you?"

How'd he know that? I questioned in my head, crossing my arms over my chest. "Yeah...what's that got to do with anything?" Sure, I took my artwork very seriously, but what's that got to do with my weapon? I wasn't gonna just use a paintbrush or pencil to kill things, was I?

Vanitas gave a short nod, turning away to think for a second, I assumed. I played with the hem of one of my bell sleeves, fingering the soft, white fabric with my index finger as he was seemingly lost in thought. Facing me again, he demanded, "Think about painting. Or, actually, think about colours."

"Colours?"

"Colours," When I still didn't get the picture, he came up with an analogy to help my slow processing mind. "Think about painting a picture of a chair. You only have the colours of the things around you to paint. Which ones do you choose?"

Colours around me... That was a tough one. The trees' bark were a violet colour, in contrast with their bright green leaves. The river, lake and small waterfall were a light blue, crystal and sparkling, and the inky sky was a dark purple with bright white stars scattered throughout the vast sky. The lamp posts and lanterns were a gold colour, their lights giving off a warm, orange glow. And for a chair, which colours would I chose? Putting a hand to my chin, I pondered over my choices for a good two minutes, much to the irritation of Vanitas. Then, an idea. "I'd use the violet colour from the trees' bark for the main color, and the dark purple sky for the shading. Then, I'd add the light source with the colours from the lamp posts and lanterns. The light blue from the river and lake would be the shine on the chair."

Slightly impressed with my answer, the boy gave a smirk. "Not bad. Do you have that memorized in your head? I'm sure you have some empty space in there," Oh, that's really mature, you prick. "Quit glaring. Now we get to the actual weapon-making."

" 'Making'? I'm gonna make my own weapon?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at this proposition. Tucking a lock of pink-dyed hair behind my ear, I added, "How?"

Motioning to a tree that stood a few feet away from us, he simply said, "Concentrate. Picture the colour in your hands."

In my hands? Like paint-wise? Looking over towards the normal tree innocently planted next to a few benches, my mind went blank and decided to concentrate on exactly what Van said to do: picture the colour melting into my hands. Maybe I could do something with the colour— morph it into a spear, or sword, or knife of some sort. I could feel the sword's hard, cold exterior in my hands, and before I even knew what I was doing, my arm grew a mind of its own and raised towards the tree, making a swiping motion. My eyes almost popped out of my head when I saw the colour of the tree actually fly off and into my hands, melting into a sword right in my palm. The sudden weight made my arms droop, the weapon hitting the soft grass beneath my feet. I blinked once, twice, three times before finally looking towards Vanitas, a look of disbelief and excitement written on my face.

"Congrats. You've gotten your new power," Were his only words of congratulations, before he suddenly got into a battle stance. "Now let's see how you make a first impression."

Before I could even utter a "What?", he came charging at me, and I barely had time to dodge his slash. That keyblade looked like it could deal some pretty serious damage, and I didn't want to try that it anytime soon. The purple sword in my hands felt heavy and too hard to swing around, so I had to keep dragging it behind me to keep from getting hit by Vanitas. If I could get it to be a sword, couldn't I get it to be a pistol or something instead? If only this homicidal jerk would keep still for a minute..!

"Stop running!" He yelled, sprinting towards my position with his Keyblade raised. Instead of following his advice, I chose to run in the opposite direction, kicking up some loose grass.

"Can't we take this slower?!" I yelled back, taking a second to catch my breath. "I'm a newbie!"

"I don't believe in taking things slow, Cadence," No shit, Sherlock.

I knew I could change this thing, I was pretty confident that I could, but I wasn't so sure about the time pressure. It was either fight or flight in this situation, and I knew that flight wouldn't get me anywhere but out of breath. The adrenaline finally kicking in, I felt a burst of energy run throughout my body, giving me just what I needed— time to think! Come on, Cadence, think! What's better than a sword?

Avoiding another close call from Vanitas' keyblade, the purple colour in my hands morphed into two identical pistols, much lighter and much more manageable in my shaky hands. Gaining a new sense of confidence, I stood my ground, raising both guns towards the raven-haired boy. "Let's slow down this song, Vani boy."

With another smirk, he came charging, and I chose to tumble me way out of his grasp, instead aiming towards him from afar. Was I supposed to actually harm him? I doubt he'd care, but that doesn't mean it might still hurt him. If anything, I aimed around him, the purple bullets barely grazing his arms and hair. Eventually, I could tell he was getting tired of dodging my bullets and the far-range between us, and decided to aim a little closer, using his teleportation power against me. One minute, he'd be three feet away from me, the next— BAM! He's right behind me. I realized this pistol thing wasn't going to work for much longer, and concentrated on synthesizing a spear instead, the large weapon meeting the palms of my hands in only three seconds. I'd have to work on getting the morphing thing to happen quicker, I could tell, since Vanitas only took a second to deal out an attack. I dashed towards him, spear raised slightly as I watched his movements, our weapons clashing against each other loudly.

"Didn't know you wanted to get this close," His golden irises pierced through my emerald ones, and I let out a scoff.

"Guess I just want your attention," I tightened the grip on my spear, "Now that I have it..!"

Vanitas must have seen my move coming, because in no time flat he had my spear knocked out of my hands and on the other side of the training grounds, his keyblade pressed to my throat from behind, my eyes wide in shock. His chest with barely heaving, where's my breaths were coming out choppy and hard. "Nice try, kid."

He released me, and I held a hand up to my throat in slight fear. He could have killed me! "W-Whatever. I'm new to this, remember? I didn't even know I could use colours like that..."

"What matter now is that you can fight. After some toughening up, you'll be able to defend yourself out on the field without my help."

"Against what?"

"Whatever tries to kill you, idiot."

I nodded, plopping down on the cool grass beneath me. The next few weeks were going to be hell if this was the way he trained. I'm not as fast as him, I don't have his soldier-like stamina, nor do I want it. The colour in my hand melted away, creeping its way back towards the tree whence it came to fill it with its light violet color. "I had no idea that was even possible..."

"Well, get used to it. Some weird stuff happens around here."

* * *

**might time skip in the next chapter to the night before the mark of mastery. Just to get the actual good stuff in, along with the drama and possible romance c: **

**Should Cadence travel with Ventus, Aqua, or Terra? VOTE IN THE REVIEWS! :D **


End file.
